What happened
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced policy reforms for Indian Railways to modernise infrastructure, streamline freight logistics, and support more eco-friendly operations. The announced measures focus on freight pricing, containerisation, licensing, wagon design, and contract execution.
Key reform proposals
The announced package includes a shift from complex freight structures to a per-tonne-per-kilometre rate structure. The reform is intended to simplify freight pricing and improve predictability for cargo users.
Indian Railways is also proposed to move major bulk commodities from open wagons to closed containers. The announcement specifically mentions fly ash transport in closed, leak-proof containers, and containerised movement of fertilisers and foodgrains to ease storage bottlenecks.
The reforms further propose a unified licensing regime for container train operations through a single licence with a registration fee. The package also allows private industry to design custom wagons instead of keeping designs strictly controlled by a standards body.